Chemical weed control agents enable more efficient crop production by elimination of competing plant growth. During the past years, there has been an intensified search for herbicides to control unwanted plants.
A number of carbamoyl substituted triazoles are known to be useful as herbicides. For example, Nakayama et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,271, disclose as herbicides dialkylcarbamoyl triazoles substituted by alkylsulfonyl, -sulfinyl and -thio groups. Brookes et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,952,001, disclose as herbicides a broad group of 1-disubstitutedcarbamoyl-3-substituted triazoles including 3-alkylthio, alkylsulphinyl, alkylsulphonyl, alkenylthio and disubstituted 3-sulfonamides. Patel, U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,831, discloses as a herbicide the single compound 3-benzylsulfonyl-1-diethylcarbamoyl-1,2,4-triazole. McKusick, U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,131, discloses as insecticides a broad group of 1-carbamoyl-3-substituted-1,2,4-triazoles. Derwent Alerting Abstracts Bulletin, Chemical Patents Index, Number 84-092381/15 of Japanese Patent 59-39880 discloses as herbicides a broad group of 1-carbamoyl-3-(substituted benzylsulfonyl, -sulfinyl and -thio)-1,2,4-triazoles. Derwent Alerting Abstracts Bulletin, Chemical Patents Index, Number 86-249722/38 of Japanese Patent 61-178980 discloses as herbicides a broad group of 1-carbamoyl-3-(substituted heterocyclylalkylsulfonyl, -sulfinyl and -thio)-1,2,4-triazoles. None of this art suggest the specific class of substituted triazole sulfonates and thiosulfonates of the present invention.